New Bill Would Make Illegal Streaming A Whopping Felony

You know those semi-shady websites that seem to stream every movie and TV show imaginable? Or, you know, YouTube? If a new bill by Senators Amy Klobuchar and John Cornyn passes, spreading copyrighted works on them will be a felony.

And a felony means prison time. The bill would target operators and sharers, not watchers, but the penalties are pretty stiff (as felonies tend to be!): up to five years in prison. Not the MPAA knocking on your door for a check. Prison. The bill’s not a law yet – it has a long way to go – but we’re keeping our careful eyes on it. It seems a little harsh to send someone to federal prison for uploading an episode of Seinfeld. [Ars Technica]